


The Eyes Have It

by Hawkscape



Series: Redtail Tales [4]
Category: Fallout (Video Games), Fallout 4, Fallout: New Vegas
Genre: Anger, Death, Embarrassment, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Eye Trauma, Eyes, Fluff and Angst, Gen, Gender-Neutral Pronouns, Guns, Hurt/Comfort, Self Confidence, Violence
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-02-04
Updated: 2016-02-04
Packaged: 2018-05-18 06:41:59
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,792
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5902285
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Hawkscape/pseuds/Hawkscape
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>No one knows what Red's eyes looks like until an unfortunate encounter with raiders forces their hand. How will Hancock react and will their friendship survive?</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Eyes Have It

If anyone had asked Redtail about why they always wore sunglasses, even indoors, they would have gotten any number of sarcastic responses. 

“One time I stared at the sun to long.” 

“I actually don't have any eyes, but I don't want to freak anybody out.” 

“It's a running bet with Deacon to see who can wear them longer.” 

Anyone around them long enough to get the chance to ask got the message that it was a touchy subject and generally steered away from it. Except for Hancock. He seemed to have made it his mission to figure out why they always wore them. The subject came up one day as they were wandering the Commonwealth onto the next settlement in trouble. 

“So, my working theory is that you're a rogue synth. Making everyone like you and then at the very end climactic moment, you take off your glasses on the crumbled heap of the institute, revealing your heritage.” Red nodded mock-seriously. “It would also explain you being able to get shot in the head.” Hancock added while flicking their hat playfully. 

The cowboy readjusted their hat with a huff before replying. “Having fought enough synths, I know even their not supposed to survive that.” 

Hancock bumped into there shoulder slightly. “You sure? Doesn't feel like that whe-” There friendly banter was cut off when a slug ripped through the side of Red's coat. They both responded the same with various curses and a sudden need to be closer to the ground. No communication was needed as both of them decided to quickly duck behind a nearby rusted out pickup truck. As soon as they were behind cover the pair brandished their respective weapons, Hancock's shotgun and Red's 10mm, Speedy. 

Hancock turned to his partner as he made sure his gun was loaded. “You good?” 

Red did the same to Speedy despite their near religious need to always keep it topped off. They clicked the magazine back in before giving a menacing smirk. “Always.” They then rose up over the side of the truck bed to attempt and get a bead on whoever was shooting at them. They sneered as bullets pinged off the metal near their hands. “Raiders. I see four, but they're good at hiding, so there could be more. Closest one is more than 100 Yards, but don't worry they're coming to us.” Red let off a few rounds before ducking back down in time for a hit to ping a piece of metal over there head. 

Hancock looked around the side of the vehicle to see the cowboy was correct. “Are you shooting at them?” 

Red looked through their bag for something that could help them. Explosives would be useful right about now. “Uh, yeah?” They responded like their companion had just said something supremely stupid. 

“Look, friend, Speedy is a great gun but you can't use it to shoot more than 90 feet, at most. It's like shooting at the moon with a BB gun, ya feel me?” Red looked gravely at Speedy before rummaging in their bag for something else. 

“Not sure a shotgun is any better.” They mumbled over the pings of bullets honing in on them. Hancock was about to respond with something about shot spread, but before they could, Red was putting together something out of parts in their bag. The mass of parts quickly formed themselves into a sniper rifle. The mayor thought he knew where his partner was going with this sudden bout of crafting until the gun was unceremoniously shoved into his hands, making him drop his shotgun. “Here, cover me.” 

“Wait, why can’t you do it? If you wanted a rifleman you should have brought along Preston.” Red shifted uncomfortably before going back into their bag and pulling out a crowbar and some Stimpaks. 

“I just can’t okay. I’ll keep ‘em offa you, don’t worry.” With that they were dashing around the back side of the truck. 

“That's not really what I was worried about!” Hancock barely had time to shout after them. before he was forced to scramble into position on the edge of the truck bed. Red was already bobbing and weaving towards the nearest raider, the volley of gunfire already lessening as it split between the two of them. The mayor focused on the farther away raiders that were hiding behind a crumbling wall. Their mohawks made nice targets. “Say cheese, asshole.” 

On Red's side of the fight, most of the bullets were being dodged by their erratic movements and their proximity to the raider nearest them. They made first contact by swinging the crowbar hard to connect with the raiders ribs. Said ruffian tried to use there pistol against them, but the cowboy was able to crack it out of their hands in time. It took a lot of maneuvering to take the raider down and Red was so focused they didn't notice a second raider come from behind until they heard Hancock yelling their name. 

“Red!” They turned around and was hit with a glancing blow to their head by a bat, knocking their glasses off and hat askew. It made them stumble backwards a second, leaving another opening for the raider to swipe at them. They were able to use there stumbling momentum to swing around the raider quicker and deliver a full force blow to the back of the criminals neck. The raider went down with a heavy thud. They didn't hear anymore shooting and figured Hancock must have taken out the rest of the group. They raised a hand to find there two suspicions confirmed. Their old head wound was bleeding again from the hit, and their glasses were, in fact, gone. They fixed their hat and started searching for their shades. 

They unfortunately found them half crushed a few feet away from the tussle. They picked them up with a sneer as the telltale flap of a coat signaled their companion's arrival on the scene. They swore under their breath as they went to search the raiders they had downed, deliberately keeping their eyes on the ground. “You okay there, slugger? That was quite the hit. Quick, how many heads on a brahmin?” 

Red ignored them as they searched the raiders for any sunglasses. No such luck. The mumbled to themselves. “The only raiders in existence against fashionable eye wear…” Hancock leaned down slightly. “You mumbling to yourself? That's not a good sign. Do you think a mentat would fix a concu-” They were cut off by their partner suddenly standing up and looking onto his own jet black eyes. Their left eye seemed to be normal, despite having a slightly unusual light gray color. Their right eye, on the other hand, seemed to have something wrong with it. The eye was milky and clouded, save for a ring of darker color around the rim. It gave their eyes the appearance of being inverse to one another. The blood running from their injury did nothing to dissuade from the fact that it looked like the eye of a dead man. 

Despite himself, Hancock gave a little start, hating himself for it afterwards. Red deliberately ignored it, but he could see they had noticed. “Where are the rest of them?” The mayor tried to play it casual and thumbed back behind him at the broken wall. Without another word, the cowboy set a steady pace towards the outpost. Their partner had never seen them this serious. They did a systematic search before seeming to get frustrated and kick at one of the dead raiders. 

Hancock wasn't sure what to say for once and simply trailed behind them silently as they grabbed their packs from behind the truck and kept on. It was less than a mile or so before Red seemed to calm down enough to talk, but they still had a bitter bite to their voice. “So are you gonna ask or not?” The ghoul stopped at being suddenly addressed and shrugged like he wasn't exploding from speculation on the inside. Their partner wasn't going to take that as an answer, it seemed. They turned around sharply and stepped up to the mayor flashing their canines. “Bullshit. You've been wanting to know ever since we partnered up, and now that I have no choice but to show you, you clam up.” They were pointing at him accusingly and Hancock was sure they were going to bite him with their teeth presented like that, and not in a good way. 

He raised up his hands and stepped back slightly. “Whoa, I have kept my mouth buttoned up tight since the fight. I didn't knock your glasses off and I wasn't gonna say anything if you didn't.” 

Red seemed to deflate slightly at his words looking off to the side silently for a while. They finally used their sleeve to rub off the dried blood on their face before turning back to keep walking. Hancock had thought that was that until they started talking a few yards later. 

“It got like that when I got shot in the head. Doc said it separated something.” They pulled their hat down slightly against the mid afternoon sun. “Can't see shit out of it.” 

Hancock had tried to keep quiet though their outpouring, but let out a small noise of understanding at that. That was the reason they couldn't used the sniper rifle. 

“Don’t want people to see something's wrong with me.” 

That sentiment stuck a little too close to home for Hancock, even if it was in a different way. He kept his eyes trained on the back of their head as they kept moving. “I feel ya. If anyone knows about fucked up eyes it would be me.” He pointed slightly at his own pitch colored orbs with a slight laugh to try and lighten the mood, but they didn't seem to respond. 

They shook their head slightly and stopped to turn back around to the ghoul. “I’m sorry man. You poured out your whole tragic backstory to me and I can't even show you my face without biting your head off.” 

It was hard to see their usually vivacious partner so down. Hancock put a reassuring hand on their shoulder with a slight shake. “No problem man, everyone's got their hangups.” Red looked them in the face again with a small smile shared between them. “And besides,” the ghoul shrugged. “Now I know which side to sneak up on you from. Oh, and I can also cover you better in a fight, but whatever.” 

Red shoved them playfully as they started walking again. “I swoon at your thoughtfulness Mister Mayor.” 

Hancock readjusted his pack and followed them close behind. “Darn right you do.”

**Author's Note:**

> Feel free to drop me a line!  
> http://hawkscape.tumblr.com/  
> https://www.youtube.com/c/HawkScape  
> http://hawkscape.deviantart.com/


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